It’s been a solid season for Pat Mata’utia, as the 22-year-old made his NRL debut in Round 1 and has gone on to make 13 appearances.
While he started the year in the centres, he has since made a shift into the back row.
“It’s a lot tougher than playing in the backs,” he said in a press conference on Wednesday.
“There’s a lot more defence but I’m enjoying it.”
Mata’utia says the positional change was brought about by head coach Nathan Brown.
“I’ve been working really hard since Browny told me that he sees me playing somewhere in the middle,” he said.
“That’s where I see myself playing in the future.
“Now my brothers are always teasing me about how big I am and the middle is where I belong.”
Meanwhile, fellow back rower Mitch Barnett says he is as desperate as ever for a win this weekend against the St George Illawarra Dragons.
“I’d love nothing more than a win, and just for our confidence going into the preseason it would be really good,” he said.
“I feel like since my first game here we’ve gotten a lot better, and if we can get a win it would give everyone a boost.”
As for Korbin Sims, Saturday's final round match is about improvement for the young Knights.
“We knew from an early stage that we wouldn’t be in the finals,” Korbin Sims said.
“So we’ve just been trying to improve towards the end of the year.
“If we can cap it off with a win that would be great.”
